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Bachna Ae Haseeno – Movie Review

August 15, 2008

Bachna ae haseeno (Beware pretty girls!) from Yash Raj Films is a romance, but the kind of romance that I have not seen in Hindi cinema before. There are three leading ladies which our hero Raj (Ranbir Kapoor) meets at different points in his life – from the age of 18 to the age of 30, and that’s about all I am going to reveal about the story. That’s not the only reason I liked the movie though. I liked it because Raj has shades and shades of gray and there is actually a story to the film. But be prepared, Raj’s character is just about the only realism you can expect from the film. Not that it took away any of my enjoyment…the dramatic presentation of various events in the movie was the method that the director (Siddharth Anand) used to tell his very sweet, though unbelievable story. Luckily for me, I don’t see such films for my daily dose of reality.

The locale
The film was shot in Europe and Australia and the viewer is treated to some exotic locales. Frankly that’s getting boring. I mean, who wants to see the Swiss Alps in Hindi movies again and again and again! Sometimes I wonder if the actors and crew go abroad because they want a foreign holiday or because they want the film to appeal to the NRI market…it certainly isn’t necessary for the story. And I am sure NRI’s would love to see India more than anything else.

The story (no spoilers)
An apology is important. All of us have been hurt by someone or the other at some point in our lives and all of us have hurt others, knowingly or unknowingly. And it’s not just romantic relationships that I am talking about here. And we have all longed for a way to mend the relationship…but having the understanding to realise where one went wrong or summoning up the courage to apologise is not common. In fact the deeper the hurt caused, the greater the reluctance the apologise. What we often don’t realise is that unless a genuine apology is given (which can only come with true repentance) the relationship cannot mend. I thought the director tackled this issue sensitively, bringing out the dilemma of the characters – whether to apologize and/or whether to forgive and the consequences of it.

The characters and the actors
Mahi (Minissha Lamba) is a romantic and quite besotted with the film Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (DDLJ) and so it’s not really surprising that she meets our Raj (Ranbir Kapoor). Raj, who has stars in his eyes and love in his heart. Raj, who loves to love girls…but wait a minute, this story is not a bit like DDLJ, which is another Yash Chopra flick. And that’s because our Raj is not the perfect hero. What, a smart and good-looking guy who is willing to take off his shirt at any given moment and is the best beau any girl could have – considerate, chivalrous, charming and persistent – is not a nice guy? The script-writer has got it all wrong, surely there must be something good in him…but well, that is what the movie is about…us trying to discover the decent Raj. Not just us, it’s a process of discovery for Raj too. Thankfully the director didn’t try to pass off Raj’s flaws as virtues and nor does he try to whitewash them…

Out of the three women in the movie I liked Bipasha Basu (she plays the role of Radhika) the best. I am not sure whether she got the most screen time, but it seemed as if she did. She dominates the movie. She is right for her role too, the role of a glamorous model. She looks gorgeous and though her beauty does not eclipse that of Deepika’s beauty (who plays Gayatri), her performance does. I am not saying that Deepika didn’t act well. She has an expressive face and I think she has a lot of potential. However, I felt she wasn’t quite suited for the role. In this movie her character (Gayatri) is tough and independent, but she comes across as just the opposite. She had all the right scenes, but she still comes across as fragile. Minissha Lamba (Mahi) acted well too. Another good performance was that of Kunal Kapoor. He comes in only at the end but delivers a hard hitting performance. As for Ranbir…well he has those chocolate boy looks but I thought his acting was average.

In Conclusion
I think this is a nice movie, all about young people and about love but it isn’t another Jaane Tu. The story is far more complicated than that…actually Jaane Tu didn’t really have a strong story line (although it is a better quality movie). This does, even if it’s one that raises eyebrows. It’s a sweet heart-warming tale, a bit slow in parts, funny in parts, and with average music. I enjoyed it. Not great cinema and not for everyone but I hope you can figure out from the review whether you’ll like it.

Now 1st thing I envy u catching 1st day show of movies. :) Secondly, I think I’ll like this movie as the hero is not mr.goody-two-shoes. I’m tired of same repeated love stories like Jaane Tu. Looks like BAH (lol :D ) will be a refreshing change. Hope to see it soon. As for Ranbir it will be my first movie. I avoided Sawariya. Good review!

Reema, thanks. But I must mention that Jaane Tu was a better quality movie and now I have added that in my review. Good you brought this up because I realised that perhaps people might think that I liked this movie better. – Nita.

Manirathnam is the only director who can show India with a different perspective, everyone else prefer to go to Newzealand or Europe or Australia. This story kind of looks like a Tamil movie called Autograph. The hero in the movie falls in love with girls when he is in school/college and work.

Dineshbabu, I too like to see movies shot in India as the foreign ones are simply scenery that one sees again and again and again and that too when it’s unconnected with the story! It’s very boring. – Nita.

i love the fact that you give real dope on the movies. the newspapers have trashed the movie, making me almost jump in my seat because i have already booked the tickets… thanks to your review, i am now looking forward to watching it this evening…
Cheers!
Don’t expect too much! :) – Nita.

BAH is a lovely film! Its not a comedy, more a sensitive story with funny moments. Its true strength are in its performances as each character is so true to their basic nature. Cinematography is excellent….certainly worth the watch! ! !

Nita, even though these movies might be individually good or bad, they do reflect a disturbing trend in Hindi cinema. It seems that the only movies released these past years are these highly glamorized, glossy films that in no way appeal to the vast majority of Indians. Unfortunately our filmmakers (like most Indians) are ready to ignore our own countrymen to impress foreigners.

I really miss movies like Shahenshah, Mr. India and Tere Mere Sapne. I wonder if they will ever come back ?

I don’t know whether they appeal to the vast majority or not vikram and definitely most films have flopped this year. bollywood had a bad year. but some were hits. not all deserved. – Nita.

Oh God, now I get the gravity of your statement which you made maybe a year ago which said ‘I like watching movies’… खरंच् तु काहीपण बघते, or almost something like that :) Do you get itchy if you miss a movie release?
tempted to reply in marathi but don’t have the script installed! But yeah. :( and what’s worse is that I cannot sit in front of the tv and watch the same movie! – Nita.

Hi Nita,
I saw the movie and quite liked it. Wrote my own little review. I am a writer and I want to get better… I’d really appreciate it if you’d have a quick glimpse at my blog and gave me some feedback. I know you’re a busy writer, but your thoughts would really mean a lot :)
Thanks

can you give a link to your blog please? your blog is not linked to your name. You need to fill it in the space marked “url” . – Nita.

Nita, I quite enjoyed this movie. The story line’s nothing great, but it’s definitely worth a watch. I feel that Bipasha had the best role- and she did full justice. She had the most screen time. And I again agree with you RE: Deepika- she didn’t suit the role. I never got the impression that she’s independent. She comes across as a gharelu dependent types! Ranbir was amazing :D I went to watch this movie just for him. Loved the way the title song was done! Great review Nita.

Thanks Ruhi. Glad you agreed with me about Bipasha. She is stunning isn’t she! About Deepika, I was thinking about it and I realised that she was too dolled up to be a taxi-driver. I remember one scene when she was actually putting one single strand of hair into place! As if she is a at a photo-shoot or something! Even her mannerisms were very like that if you know what I mean. I think directors should tell their actors that just expressions aren’t enough, the whole body language counts. – Nita.

I am gonna watch this movie just for Bipasha Basu..I really like her persona. Though I ave no clue why the guys these days are big time fida over Deepika.
I dont like the music of this movie much and its quite strange considering the fact YRF banner alway has melodious tunes!!I am so keen to know the ending!!

I think Bipasha is great in this movie. But I think the guys like Deepika because she has that doll like look. – Nita.

Catching a movie on its very first Friday is one of the upsides of being a freelance writer. Life is good, isn’t it Nita? I happened to watch the movie too and I quite agree with most things you have to say.

Shuchi, this movie was written for my blog, and not on a freelance basis for anybody. I saw the movie because I wanted to – for my pleasure. So far I have written only one review on payment basis (Thoda Pyar) but all the other movies I see because I love the movies. However I am open to free-lance writing but not many have asked me to write movies for a decent payment. Thanks for visiting. – Nita.

I dont Raj character was new it was taken from DDLJ and Salam Namastey in first half and in second half it was SRK of yesterday trying to charm everybody.
I think Yash Raj will do themselves good by making less movie otherwise they are losing there name.
Bipasha is saving grace of the movie.

i saw the movie very recently, movie was fine, and was very funny at times..excellent entertainment, but i didn’t like Ranvir Kapoor, he was just ok..i was more disappointed because he is son of a wonderful actor like Rishi kapoor

actually I was disappointed with Ranvir too…he is not as good as rishi kapoor was in his first few films. – nita.

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